Book 5: Chapter 20 (1/2)

“You say that like we haven’t met before?” I asked, my lips twitching anxiously.

I didn’t know why, but my heart was suddenly beating fast, and I felt nervous. This was the Netori, or rather all three sisters, but she also wasn’t. The way she held herself seemed to have a feeling of pride and arrogance. She came off as far more elegant and less accessible than her sisters. It was an aloof feeling, like I wasn’t fit to be in the same room with her. As I studied her more, that feeling only grew.

I told myself that this was because of the power discrepancy between us. I no longer had the sisters inside me, and NTR was three times stronger, maybe more, than she had been before. She was a much higher tier goddess. In terms of level, she had to be at least a level 12 now. She might be as strong as Depravity. For a mortal, it only furthered the gap between us greatly.

“I possess the memories of those three women, but to say I am the same isn’t quite right.” She responded carefully.

“I see…”

Her voice had an alluring charm to it that made a person want to listen. She had an awe-inspiring presence that left me feeling inadequate. No matter how much I fought against those negative feelings, her perfection only seemed to serve to highlight everything I lacked. It was at that point I realized that I didn’t have the same feeling around Mary. Even when she appeared in her true form in this white space, I didn’t feel quite like this. NTR seemed to notice the small frown on my face.

“What is it?” She asked, cocking her head. “I’m more than those three were. Am I not satisfying enough?”

“It’s not that…” I didn’t meet her eye. “I just… miss them.”

I changed what I was going to say. I had no clue how to tell her that she made me feel inadequate. Rather, I took it as a personal challenge. Since there was such a gap between us, I would have to close it. I told Netori I would have her, all of her. This was all of her, and the second I saw her, I started to feel scared. I forced myself to look her in the eyes and smile.

“Perhaps, they should have made it clear the results of this. Their personalities were just fragments of my own. The same with their beauty, their power… everything.”

“It’s fine. I just need to get used to the new you. You’re still my girl.”

“Hehe… that’s the boy I remember.” She laughed, but in a way that didn’t really touch her eyes. “Then, shall we go?”

“Just like that? You can bring me back to life?”

“Of course.” She nodded eloquently, “I am much stronger now. She promised you godhood, right? I will keep that word, and help you achieve godhood. It will take playing NTR Crush a little longer. However, I’m not as weak as Netori. I can award more points, and I had ideas. This game is my namesake, after all, not Netori’s. As an ally, you have definitely moved up.”

“And afterward, we’ll be together forever, right?” I asked, feeling a bit afraid of the answer.

She looked me up and down and then took a single step toward me. Even though she was several feet away, she closed the distance with that single step. She gently put a palm on my cheek.

“You don’t need to worry. This is a good thing. You did what the sisters wanted. You have nothing to fear. I’ll take care of you. After all, I owe you my existence. I didn’t just absorb their power. I absorbed their love. I care about you, Hakaru. That hasn’t changed.”

Feeling her soft, warm hand on my cheek, I finally let out a relieved breath. I finally felt like things might be okay. I was just letting myself get worried over nothing. Her face changed. Maybe her personality changed as well. However, she was essentially the same girl.

“Now… I’m sorry, but this is going to hurt for a bit.”

“Huh?”

I suddenly felt like I had been plunged into water. The white light around me flicked out like a switch, and I was surrounded by darkness. Then, I started to feel a pain in my gut. Actually, compared to the feeling of NTR’s formation, it was rather weak, and I was able to handle it alright. It also seemed rather brief. It felt like time, which was at a standstill, had returned to normal.

Slowly, muffled sounds and feeling started returning to me. I heard the murmur of voices. I heard a beeping sound. My eyes started to flutter open. The light was blurry, and I couldn’t make out anything. Instead, I concentrated on the sense that was the most vivid at the moment, my ears.

“His eyes are moving! Honey, he’s waking up!”

“That’s good. Good! Hakaru! You scared us! I thought my son was dead!”

“Don’t start chastising him now, he’s not even awake.”

“Ah, good idea. I’ll chastise him when he’s fully awake.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

My eyes started to clear up to see the image of my mother and father looking down on me. Mother had tears in her eyes, while dad had a slight smirk on his face.

“How was the other side, son?” Dad asked.

Mom hit his shoulder with the back of her hand. “Don’t say something like that?”

“What? The doctors said for five minutes he was actually dead?” Dad let out a laugh.

“Don’t remind me! You foolish man!”

I was in a hospital bed and wearing a hospital gown. It was a single room and I was there alone with my parents. There were various cords strapped to me and needles inside me. The pain in my chest wasn’t as bad as it had been, but as I tried to move, I could feel bandages across my chest.

“K-Kira…” My voice croaked the first word I had spoken.

Nothing else mattered to me at the moment other than my women. Of them, it was Kira who was in the most danger. Knowing what her fate was would more or less inform me of the fate of the rest. Plus, since she was my girlfriend, it’d be the least odd if I asked about her, although it was tough to say whether my thoughts were so complicated yet. My head throbbed, and just trying to remember what happened was difficult.

My parents glanced at each other and then mom spoke. “Kira is fine, dear. They’re actually out in the waiting room.”

“They?”